Educational apparatus.



L. M. HOUSEKNECHT.

EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS.

APPLlCATlON FILED SEPT-19, 1914- ,141 340 Patented June 1, 1915.

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q/Vitweoow THE NORRIS PETERS CO. PHOTO-H1140" WASHINGTON. D C.

L. M. HOUSEKNECHT.

EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS.

- APPLICATION FILED SEPT-19, 1914- 1 1 1 ,3Q0 a PatentedJune 1, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

g vwvmtor rHE NORRIS PETERS 60., FHOmLITHQ, WASHINGmN. D. c

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EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 1, 1915.

Application filed'September 19, 1914. Serial No. 862,542.

To all @071 am it may concern 7 Be it known that I, LLOYD M. House nNncn'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at Picayune, in the county of Pearl River and State of Mississippi, have invented new and useful Improvements in Educational Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention pertains to astronomical educational apparatus; and it consists in the peculiar and advantageous construction, hereinafter described and claimed, adapted to exemplify in an interesting and entertaining manner the movements of the earth'and the moon, relative to each other and the sun, as well as the phases of the moon and the manner in which they are brought about, and eclipses and the times at which the same take place.

In the accompanying drawings which are hereby made a part hereof: Figure 1 is a vertical section of the apparatus constituting the best practical embodiment of my invention that I have as yet devised. Fig. 2 is a detail horizontal section showing the connections between the two sets of gears. Fig. 3 is a detail vertical section showing the train of gearing back of the gearing shown in Fig. 1; the section being on the line 33 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail plan of the annular plate, shown in Fig.- 1 1n 'diametrical section.

7 Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all of the views of the drawings.

At 1 on a stand 2 are batteries, and fixed to said stand is a tubular upright3 through which wires are carried from the batteries to an incandescent electric lamp 4, mounted on the upright 3, and designed to represent the sun.

Fixedrby a set screw 5 in the stand 2, and surrounding the upright 3 is a stationary tube 6, having a beveled gear 6? at its upper end, and mounted'on a ball bearing 7 and loosely surrounding the tube 6 is a revoluble sleeve 8 on which is a casing 9 from which extends a lateral tubular arm 10. It will also be noticed by comparison of Figs. 1 and 4 that an annular plate 11 surrounds the sleeve 8 and is supported by a collar 12 and arms 13; the collar being fixed by a set screw 14 or other means on the tube 6. The plate 11 is designed to coiiperate with a pointer 15 on the arm to indicate the times at which eclipses or other phenomenal occurrences take place, and while I have elected to show the plate 11 as neutral, it is obvious that it may be graduated to represent the months of the year and the days of the months. The plate 11 and the pointer will obviously indicate the month and day of any occurrence out of the ordinary while the clock hereinafter alluded to will indicate the hour and minute of the day.

Carried on the arm 10 is a casing 16, and journaled in the said arm 10 is a shaft 17. This shaft carries a beveled gear 18, intermeshed with the stationary gear 6 and is also provided in the casing 16 with a beveled gear 19. Manifestly when the shaft 17 is rotated, as hereinafter described, the action of gear 18 on gear 6 will cause the arm 10 and the casing 16 to swing about the tube 6.

Arranged on the casing 16 is a stand 20 having a socket bearing 21, and disposed in said bearing is a ball 22 on a shaft 23 that is provided at its upper end with a globe 24 and at its lower end with a gear 25. The gear 25 is intermeshed with a beveled gear 26 loose on a shaft 27 and provided with a smaller gear 28. Also fixed on the shaft 27 are gears 29 and 30; the gear 29 being intermeshed with gear 19 to drive the shaft 17 for the purpose hereinbefore stated. At its lower end the shaft 27 is mounted in a ball bearing 31 as illustrated. Fixed on the upper portion of shaft 27 is an arm 32 connected through a ball-bearing with the shaft 23. Said arm 32 serves to maintain the globe in a position twenty-three and one-half degrees north, and to move the gear 25 about the gear 26.

At in case 16 is a shaft connected in conventional manner with a spring 41, and fixed on said shaft 40 is a ratchet wheel 42, on gaged by a pawl 43, carried by a spur gear 44 that is loose on the shaft 40. The gear 44 drives gear 45 that is fast on a shaft 46, and said shaft 46 carries a spur gear 47 which is intermeshed with a spur gear 48, loose on the stand 20. Said gear 48 is equipped with an arm 49 on which is a ball 50 that represents the moon. The shaft 46 is also provided with a gear 51 which is intermeshed with a gear 52, fast on a shaft 53. This shaft 53 is provided at its upper end with a gear 55 which is intermeshed with gear 28 to rotate the same. Loose on the lower portion of shaft 53 is a gear that has a large" portion 60 and a small portion 61, said small portion being lntermeshe'd with gear 30 to drive the shaft 27.

Fixed on the shaft 40 is a beveled gear 65. This gear is intermeshed, with a gear 66 on a shaft 67 which is provided with a crank and is designed to be used to wind the spring 411 as occasion demands.

By comparison of Figs. 2fand'3, it will be noted that the gear 55is intermeshed with a gear 70, and that said gear 70 is fixed vided with gears 85 and 86. These gears '85 and 86 are intermeshed with gears 87 and 88, respectively; the gear 87 being fixed on a shaft 89, designed to carry the hour hand (not shown) of a clock, and the gear 88 being fixed on a shaft 90, designed'to carry the minute hand (not shown) of the clock. As will be manifest by reference to'Fig. 1, the face of the clock referredto can be arranged onthe side of the case 16.

Threaded in or otherwise detachably connected to the tubular arm 10 are uprights 91 and 92 having bifurcations 93 at their upper ends, and arranged in and supported by said bifurcations is a pointer 94. The pointer is on a line from the center of the sun to the center of the globe, and hence when the pointer is placed opposite the point of the globe that is coincident with the pointer, the clock will tell the diiference in time. In this connection, I would have it understood that in practice I prefer to provide the globe with maps made in an accurate manner and showing all of the large cities. The foregoing will be better understood when. it is stated that if the time is noted when the pointer is opposite "Washing ton, DJ 0., and the time is-also noted when the pointer is opposite London, England, the difference in time between the two cities can be readily ascertained.

It will be readily understood from the foregoing that during the ordinary operation of the apparatus, the uprights 91 and 92 and the pointer 94: will be removed so as to prevent interference with the movement of the ball that represents the moon.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ofthe year.

pointer on the swinging arm will show the month and the day of the eclipse while the clock will show the hour and minute of the the phases of the moon will, be clearly shown, as will also the causes of the seasons The hour and the minute when the sun crosses the Equator will also be shown as will the long periods .of darkness and light at the North and ,South Poles. In other words the globe will operate after the manner'of the earth, and will make 365'i' turns about its axis while itis being moved around the lamp that represents the sun. During the same perlod the moon Wlll make about twelve revolutions around the globe and pass between the globe and the lamp.

- Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters-Patent,

"Inan apparatus for thepurpose set forth,

the combination of a light-aifoi ding medium, .a support, a tubular arm connected with the support and revoluble about the V light-affording medium, a casing carried by said arm, means carried by the'casing for revolving the arm and the casing about said medium, a stand on the casing and having a socket bearing, a globe, a shaft fixed to the: globe and having aball dlsposed in sa d bearing and also having. agear, a gear lntermeans for drivingthe-last-named gear, a revoluble arm receiving the globe shaft and adapted to hold the gearthereof in meshwith the complementary gear and also adapted day. Again the causes that bring about 'meshed with thegear on the globe shaft,

the casing, said uprights being detachable 7 from said arm, a pointer removably arranged on the arms and between the light- ,aifording medium and the globe,1a pointer carried by said arm and an annulus connected with the support and opposed to and adapted to cooperate with said pointer.

In testimony whereof Ihave hereunto set .my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LLOYD M. HOUSEKNECHT.

Witnesses: V V

' B. B. MOODY,

L. E. FREEMAN.

Washington, D. G. 

